Request A Quilt- Operation Kid Comfort
The Armed Services YMCA’s Operation Kid Comfort Program
The Armed Services YMCA’s innovative Operation Kid Comfort program creates custom-made quilts and pillows for children of deployed U.S. military personnel who experience grief from missing their mom or dad. Photos of the deployed parent are printed onto fabric and sewn into the quilt or pillow. Each child received a quilt/pillow depending on age. Children 6 and under receive a quilt, 7 and older receive a pillow. Both quilts and pillows contain pictures of the deployed parent. Each quilt takes eight hours of volunteer sewing, as well as $50 worth of quilting materials. The program started at the Armed Services YMCA Fort Bragg Branch as has expanded to serve military families nationwide.
“When it arrived yesterday, I was in tears reading the sweetest note from the volunteer who sewed it and I wished at that moment I could hug her. I don’t know how many thank you’s you all receive on a daily or weekly basis but I cannot tell you how wonderful this quilt is. My daughter has not let it out of her sight since she saw it.”- Nicole, US Navy.
Available Locations
The list below is of the Armed Services YMCA locations currently offering the free Operation Kid Comfort program to strengthen family bonding. If your spouse’s duty station is listed below, please submit that your OKC Quilt/Pillow Request Release Form and required number of pictures directly with them:
Request a Quilt (If your duty station is not listed above)
The form on this site is only for those families NOT stationed at one of the military installations currently offering the Kid Comfort program above. Please contact the branch above directly to request a quilt if you are located in their service area. We are a top-rated military non-profit and rely on private donations to fund Operation Kid Comfort. A fee of $10 per quilt , and $5 per pillow to cover postage costs is necessary to sustain the program. Click here to pay shipping, along with the month the request was submitted. Quilts cannot be shipped until shipping costs have been paid.
Volunteering
Thanks to recent media coverage, including Parade Magazine, we have received over 1500 volunteer requests and cannot currently accept new volunteers. We still need donations though to cover the $50 of materials, printing and fabric each quilt requires. Feel free to fill out the Volunteer Form below and our Coordinator will get in touch down the road should new volunteer opportunities arise. Thank you so much for your support! You can donate here, please designate “Quilts” for the donation.
Due to the publicity of the program, requests for quilts are coming in from all over the country. Volunteers have created over 20,000 quilts since the program started, averaging about 1,000 quilts each year. Our volunteers help guarantee the continued success of one of Armed Services YMCA’s most popular no-cost programs to make military life easier.
To volunteer for the Operation Kid Comfort program, please fill out the Volunteer Quilter Form.
Sponsoring a Quilt for a Military Child
Each Quilt requires over ten hours of volunteer time, and costs $50 in materials. The need for this program continues to grow and depends on private donations to make each quilt. If you would like to sponsor a military child and help make their military life easier during deployment, please donate $50 here and note it is a donation for OKC in the comment section. Thank you!
Attitude of Gratitude
Our participants attitude of gratitude is what enables and empowers this volunteer led effort. Once you receive your quilts, please send a thank you addressed to the Armed Services YMCA and “Quilting Volunteer” to our HQ office and we will make sure to share your thanks with your Quilter and Donor :
Attn: Operation Kid Comfort
7405 Alban Station Court, Suite B215
Springfield,VA, 22150-2318
Or you can share your photos or story on the Armed Services YMCA Facebook Page.
Documents & Information
Armed Services YMCA’s Operation Kid Comfort | Fox 5 San Diego | 2011